State bodies will escape fines for misusing personal data

Charlie Flanagan, the justice minister, defended the Data Protection Bill when he launched it yesterdayBRIAN LAWLESS/PA

The government and state bodies will be exempt from fines if they misuse personal data under new laws.

While private companies will face fines of up to €20 million or 4 per cent of annual turnover for either misusing a person’s information or passing it on illegally, similar sanctions will not apply to government departments and bodies.

Charlie Flanagan, the justice minister, launched the Data Protection Bill yesterday, establishing a data protection commission with up to three commissioners and strong supervision and enforcement powers. It will be enacted alongside the EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation later this year.

Irish citizens will have more rights to access personal data, ask for incorrect, inaccurate or incomplete records to be corrected, and to request personal data be…